The Star Junior Novelization Read online

  Chapter One

  An Angel Appears

  A long time ago—nine months B.C.—a tiny rodent scurried through the dusty streets of Nazareth. The rodent’s name was Abby, and she was very hungry.

  There was nothing much to eat in the desert. But Abby knew the city was filled with humans, and where there were humans, she could find food. She hopped on the back of a traveling cart and stayed out of sight during the bumpy ride through the city gates.

  When the cart reached a busy street, Abby hopped off. She scampered to the top of a stone building and sniffed the air. The smell of freshly baked bread reached her nose.

  Abby jumped off the building and landed on the back of a woman on the road. The woman let out a scream and swatted at Abby with her broom. The little rodent quickly ran off, following the smell.

  She stopped in front of a small house. She’d found it! She climbed through the window and spotted a young woman pulling a loaf of bread out of the stone oven.

  The woman had long, brown hair and kind, dark eyes. She put the bread on the table and folded her hands in front of her. She closed her eyes and whispered a soft prayer of thanks for the food.

  Abby saw her chance. She quickly grabbed the loaf of bread and began to drag it away. Then, suddenly, she found she couldn’t move.

  She looked behind her and saw the woman looking down at her. The woman’s finger was planted in the bread. Abby froze.

  “Don’t think I don’t see you, little one,” the woman said.

  Abby bolted and hid behind a pot. She shivered as the woman walked near her, towering above her.

  But the woman didn’t hurt Abby. She tore off a chunk of bread and put it on the floor next to Abby.

  “I think there’s enough for both of us,” she said with a kind smile.

  Suspicious, Abby slowly approached the bread. The woman closed her eyes and returned to her prayer. Abby grabbed the bread and quickly stuffed a piece into her mouth.

  She was enjoying her meal when the sound of rumbling thunder distracted her. A rush of wind blew through the room, and a shadow fell across everything.

  Then a voice spoke. It was a voice that didn’t sound like any human Abby had ever heard.

  “Mary.”

  The woman, Mary, looked at Abby. “Was that you?” she asked, but the little rodent shook her head.

  Hundreds of candlelike flames appeared in the room, descending from the ceiling. Mary stood up, wide-eyed.

  Abby stared at the lights too. She didn’t know how she knew, but she knew what she was looking at—an angel.

  “Fear not,” the angel told Mary, “for you have been favored by God to receive and bear a son.”

  Abby dropped the bread she was eating and stared at the angel, stunned.

  “A son?” Mary asked. “But . . . how?”

  “The Holy Spirit will overshadow you and the child will be called the Son of God,” the angel replied. “For nothing is impossible with God.”

  “Thank you,” Mary said. “Do I say thank you? Yes. I mean, yes.”

  The lights began to swirl together, forming a wave. The wave of light wrapped around Mary, and then shot out the window with the speed of a comet.

  Abby and Mary both ran to the window. A brand new star glittered brightly in the sky.

  Tears of joy filled Mary’s eyes. Abby looked down at the morsel of bread in her paw. She tossed it away. Then she hopped outside.

  “Guys! Guys!” she cried, running through the streets of Nazareth. “You’re not gonna believe this!”

  Chapter Two

  The Donkey’s Plan

  All over the land, people noticed the new Star shining brightly in the sky.

  So did the animals.

  In the middle of the desert, three camels were resting for the night when the Star appeared.

  “Whoa!” the camels said.

  Out in the pastures, a flock of sheep looked up from grazing when the Star began to shine.

  “Whoa!” they cried.

  In the city of Bethlehem, a goat, a cow, and a horse saw the Star from their stable.

  “Whoa!” they exclaimed.

  Some desert mice popped out of their holes in the sand.

  “Whoa!” they squeaked.

  “Whoa!” said a cat next to them. Frightened, they scampered back into their holes.

  Back in the city of Nazareth, a small donkey and an old donkey were hitched to a grinding wheel in a mill. The donkeys walked around and around in circles all day long. As they walked, they turned a big wheel that ground wheat into flour.

  Even though it was nighttime, the donkeys were still walking in circles. The owner of the mill was so mean that he rarely let them rest. He hadn’t even given them names. He just called them Little Donkey and Old Donkey.

  Every time they walked around the circle, the donkeys would get a quick glimpse of the outside world through a small knothole in the wall. Little Donkey was passing by the knothole when he saw the brand new Star shining through it.

  “Whoa!” he said, stopping. “Okay, you’re not going to believe this, but I think a new star just appeared in the sk—”

  Before he could finish, the wheel turned, pulling Little Donkey away from the knothole. Old Donkey was pushing behind him, trying to get him to move.

  “No, no, no,” Old Donkey said. “What have I said about looking through that thing?”

  Little Donkey tried to back up. “Oh, come on, wait! This doesn’t happen every day!”

  Old Donkey pushed back. “Well, you know what does happen every day? Work! Remember that? That thing we do every day? Walking in circles around the mill for the rest of our lives until we die?”

  “You have a beautiful way with words, you know that?” Little Donkey asked.

  Instead of backing up he ran forward. The wheel spun quickly, and Old Donkey had to move fast to keep up with it. Soon Little Donkey was back in front of the knothole again.

  “There’s nothing out there for you, kid,” Old Donkey said, panting.

  But Little Donkey had a good feeling. “Things are changing,” he said. “That Star means something. And I’m not gonna be here forever.”

  The two donkeys walked in circles until the Miller let them stop. In the morning, they were back at work again. Little Donkey was still thinking about the Star when a dove swooped into the mill.

  “I love the smell of freshly ground grain in the morning!” the bird said.

  Old Donkey rolled his eyes. “Hey kid, your unemployed bird friend is here.”

  Little Donkey perked up. “Dave!” He ran around the mill, yanking Old Donkey behind him, and stopped underneath the dove.

  “Hey, pal!” Dave greeted him.

  “What’s new out there today?” Little Donkey asked.

  Dave hopped down onto the grinding wheel and began gobbling up the grain. “Oh, not a whole lot. I mean, it’s Nazareth. You know, that rooster on Fifth Street overslept again. And that horse, uh, what’s his name? Jeremiah or Hezekiah or something—he lost a shoe. And then, well, it’s barely worth mentioning, but the, uh . . . the Royal Caravan is strolling through town today.”

  Little Donkey’s mouth dropped open in surprise. “What? The Royal Caravan? Are you kidding?!?”

  Dave hopped up onto Little Donkey’s snout. “No, buddy, for real!” he said happily. “I spotted them outside of town and had to come straight here to tell you!”

  “Today’s the day we’ve been waiting for!” Little Donkey cheered.

  “Nazareth can kiss my gleaming white tail feathers good-bye!” Dave added. He shook his butt in Little Donkey’s face.

  Little Donkey blew Dave off his snout. “See, I told you that Star was a sign!” he said. “We’re meant f
or something greater than this.”

  Old Donkey snorted. “This is our job. And once you accept that, you’ll be a glowing picture of happiness, like me,” he said. But he didn’t look or sound happy at all.

  “Uh, we’re talking about the Royal Caravan here,” Dave said.

  “It’s the ultimate job!” Little Donkey said with a dreamy look in his eyes. “You get to go from town to town. See the world. Visit important people. And you get to march with the biggest, strongest, greatest horses in the world!”

  Dave flew back onto Little Donkey’s head. “All the animals in every town, watching us go by, and chanting our names.”

  “We’ll finally be doing something important,” Little Donkey added.

  Old Donkey shook his head. “Hmph! A miniature donkey in the Royal Caravan. That’ll be the day.”

  “Don’t listen to him,” Dave told Little Donkey.

  “And what’s a dove gonna do, carry one grape at a time?” Old Donkey asked.

  “Hey, at least he’s not locked up in a mill like us!” Little Donkey pointed out.

  Dave looked at Little Donkey. “I’m telling you, folks in this town just don’t get it!” he said. Then he turned to Old Donkey. “And I can carry two grapes, one in each talon, thank you very much.”

  A rumbling sound came from the distance. Dave flew up to the rafters, looked outside, and smiled.

  “Bells! That’s them!” he cried. “It’s time to activate Operation Prison Break!”

  Little Donkey and Dave had worked out the plan already. In order to escape, Little Donkey needed to cut the ropes that connected him to the wheel. There was a sharp metal thing on a stick in the corner of the mill. (It was called an ax, but Little Donkey didn’t know that.) The ax could cut the rope, if Little Donkey could get it in the right position.

  Little Donkey began by dragging a bucket near his path. Then the moving wheel pulled him away from the bucket. He ran to catch up with it again.

  Then he slowed down. He grabbed the ax with his teeth, and leaned it on the bucket.

  “Okay,” he said. All I have to do is kick this sharp, metal killer stick toward my head and duck!”

  “It’ll cut your harness!” Dave said.

  “And I’ll finally be free!” Little Donkey added.

  Dave grinned. “Oh, I love Operation Prison Break. Such a good idea!”

  Little Donkey took a deep breath. “Here we go!”

  He confidently kicked the bucket supporting the ax. The sharp tool flipped up, but not toward Little Donkey. It flipped away from him, knocking over a bucket on a shelf, and landed on a table.

  The shelf came crashing down, and the bucket rocketed across the room. It smashed into a rack of bread, which fell onto a ladder.

  “That’s not good,” Little Donkey said.

  The ladder knocked over a spade, and the sharp digging tool chopped the rope in half that was holding up a hanging lantern. The lantern swung and smashed an oil lamp, shattering it and spilling oil onto a wood shelf. The shelf burst into flames!

  Little Donkey blew on the fire, trying to put out the flames. It didn’t work. The flaming shelf toppled over, knocking into a table. A knife, ax, and pitchfork on the table launched through the air!

  The knife and pitchfork whizzed by Little Donkey’s ears. The ax got even closer—and sliced right through his rope! He was free!

  “See? I knew that would work,” Little Donkey said proudly.

  “Just like we planned!” Dave said. “With a momentary death hiccup.”

  Dave flew past Old Donkey, waving. “Well, old timer, it’s been real. Good luck to you.”

  Little Donkey followed him to the door, but stopped. He looked at Old Donkey.

  “Wait, Dave. We can’t just leave him,” Little Donkey said.

  “Oh, come on!” Dave cried. “Buddy, I get where you’re coming from, but this is the Royal Caravan, not the Retirement Caravan. Look at him—he’s, like, three hundred years old!”

  At that moment the mill door swung open, knocking Dave aside. The Miller, a stocky man with a mean face and bushy eyebrows, eyed the damage in the barn. He grabbed a bucket of water and quickly put out the fire. Then he removed a yoke from the wall. He slipped the heavy wood collar around Little Donkey’s neck and attached it to the wheel.

  Through the open door, Little Donkey saw the Royal Caravan moving away. His one chance at freedom. His one chance to do something important. He sighed.

  The Miller slapped him on his hindquarters, so Little Donkey would get moving again. He took a few slow, sad steps forward.

  Then he felt angry. He turned to the Miller. “You’re nothing but a great big, rotten, good-for-nothing bully!” he yelled.

  But all the Miller heard, of course, was the braying sound of an angry donkey.

  “Hee-haw! Hee-haw! Hee-haw!”

  The Miller rolled his eyes and left, closing the door behind him.

  “Yeah, you better walk away!” Donkey yelled after him.

  Dave fluttered down from the rafters.

  “Aw, who needs the Royal Caravan,” Dave said. “There’s plenty of excitement here in Nazareth.”

  Dave held back tears. “I’m gonna be honest—I’m very upset right now. I’m gonna go find someone to poop on.”

  Dave flew away.

  Little Donkey still felt angry. “If that Miller thinks this yoke is gonna stop me, ooh, boy, do I have a surprise for him! I’ll be riding with kings any day now, you’ll see!”

  • • •

  But getting rid of the heavy yoke was a lot harder than cutting the rope that had been holding him before. A month went by. Then another. And another.

  Six months later, poor Donkey was still pushing the wheel and longing for a better life.

  Chapter Three

  Donkey Breaks Loose

  Before the angel Gabriel visited Mary, she had pledged herself to marry a man named Joseph. Now, six months later, her wedding day had arrived.

  Joseph stood in front of his home, wearing a flower crown on his head and waiting for Mary. He hadn’t seen her for months, and he’d missed her. She had gone to Judah to help her relatives Elizabeth and Zechariah take care of their new baby, John. Joseph felt nervous about the big day, and was talking to himself.

  “Mmmm, still no Mary,” he muttered. “Okay. Just a little late. It’s normal to be late to your wedding feast. Totally normal. Just like it’s normal to talk to yourself.”

  Then he saw Elizabeth and Zechariah approaching, riding in a wagon drawn by donkeys. Elizabeth held Baby John in her arms. Mary wore a white wedding shawl over her blue dress.

  Joseph smiled as Mary jumped out of the wagon.

  “Mary, you look beautiful!” he said, taking her hands.

  He placed a crown of flowers on her head that matched his own.

  “So do you,” Mary replied. “Well, handsome. I’ve missed you.”

  “You’re a little late, you know,” Joseph said. “I was starting to worry.”

  “Sorry, our fault, we’re always late,” Zechariah apologized.

  Elizabeth approached, holding the baby. “ ‘We’ who?” she teased. “You were driving!”

  She looked at Joseph. “Mary was such a big help to us these past months,” she said. Then she smiled at the baby. “Wasn’t she, Baby John?”

  Joseph kissed the baby on the head. “Sorry, big guy,” he said. “I know how great she is, but I’m taking her back.”

  He took Mary’s hand and led her to the gate of the courtyard behind the house.

  “Joseph, there’s something I want to talk to you about,” Mary began.

  “Of course,” Joseph said.

  She stopped and looked into his eyes. “Just warning you, it might be a lot to take in.”

  “Mary, of course, it’s our wedding feast,” John said kindly. “You can tell me anything.”

  Mary was about to speak when the gate swung open, and a woman saw her.

  “She’s here!” the woman announced.
>
  The gate opened wider, revealing all the friends and family who had gathered for the wedding. They all stood up and applauded the wedding couple.

  “Sorry, what did you want to talk about?” Joseph asked.

  “Oh, it can wait,” Mary said. “Let’s enjoy the party.”

  • • •

  While Mary and Joseph began their wedding celebration, Little Donkey plodded around the mill wheel. He sighed.

  “So, uh, any new escape plans, kid?” Old Donkey asked.

  “What’s the point?” Little Donkey replied. “I already missed my chance to join the Royal Caravan. And I’m still stuck on this same old wheel, with the same old view.”

  That view, of course, was Old Donkey’s tail.

  “What’s wrong with the view?” Old Donkey asked.

  Little Donkey just sighed again. He stopped in front of the hole in the wall and peered through it.

  “I know it feels like we’re just going in circles,” Old Donkey said.

  Little Donkey stared at Old Donkey. “We are.”

  “Look, kid, we’re mill donkeys,” Old Donkey said. “We grind grain. We don’t carry kings.”

  Little Donkey nodded. “Yeah, I should have listened to you and given up a long time ago.”

  His whole body sagged, and he slowly made his way around the wheel again. Old Donkey looked at the smaller donkey, and the harness connecting the two of them. As he passed by the knothole, he looked through it and saw the outside gates were open.

  Old Donkey hated seeing his little friend so sad. But maybe, just maybe . . .

  “Aaaaaaaah!” Old Donkey cried, dropping his head and kneeling on his two front legs.

  The wooden harness around Little Donkey’s neck tipped forward. He slipped right out of it.

  “What’s happening?” Little Donkey asked, trotting up to Old Donkey.

  “Kid, it’s my leg,” Old Donkey said, grimacing in pain. “Go get help!”

  Little Donkey went to the door and started braying loudly. “Hee-haw! Hee-haw!”

  The Miller burst in.

  “These good-for-nothing animals,” he muttered. “What is it now?”

  Then he spotted Old Donkey on the floor and frowned. “Oh good. Just what I needed,” he complained.